How to fix headphones not showing in advanced settings and not being able to hear them

Question

I use windows 11, my JBL quantum 100 headphones are plugged into the port and have been working for about 2 to 4 weeks. I left my headphones in my laptop to go to the bathroom and when I came back no sound was coming through, I have tried restarting and when I looked in advanced settings to see if they were there, they were not even in not connected devices. When I try and use it for discord I cant hear and the same goes for youtube and other sites.

Answer 1

Welcome Qasim Ahmed,

Thank you for posting your question on the Microsoft Q&A forum. I’m sorry to hear that your Windows 11 laptop isn’t recognizing your headphones 

You can try the step below to troubleshoot the issue:  

Option 1: Test with another device 

• Please start by checking whether the headphones work on another device to rule out any hardware issues with the headphones themselves. 

Option 2: Run Audio Troubleshooter 

• Go to Settings > System > Troubleshoot > Other troubleshooters, then run the "Audio" troubleshooter. Let it detect and fix issues automatically, then restart your PC.  

Option 3: Show Hidden Devices 

• Press Windows + R, type mmsys.cpl, and press Enter to open Sound settings.  
• In the Playback tab, right-click blank space, select "Show Disabled Devices" and "Show Disconnected Devices"  
• Right-click your JBL or headphone device (may appear as "Headphones" or USB audio), enable it, set as default, and test  

Option 4: Update/Reinstall Drivers 

• Open Device Manager > expand "Sound, video and game controllers" and "Audio inputs and outputs" > right-click audio devices (e.g, Realtek Audio, Headphones)> select Update driver > Search automatically. If no change, uninstall them, restart PC to reinstall generic drivers, then check sound settings again 

I really hope that the information I gave above was helpful to you. Please feel free to reply below and let me know if you have further concern on this matter. 

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